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Mark Moxon's Travel Writing

India: Sanchi

The main stupa at Sanchi
The main stupa at Sanchi

Sanchi is a hill topped with some spectacular Buddhist ruins, 'among the best in India' according to my guidebook (which says more about the other Buddhist ruins in India than I care to know). Certainly the ruins are Buddhist and they're reasonably interesting, but after my recent visits to the astonishing rock temples of Ellora and the deeply atmospheric Mughal fortresses of Mandu, stupas aren't quite as thrilling. Dome-shaped and topped with strange spires that look like something out of Flash Gordon, stupas just sit there: you can't go inside them, you can't climb them, and although they look pleasant, so does crazy paving, and I wouldn't cross a continent to look at a patio.

The intricate gates to the stupas
One of the intricate gates leading to the stupas
A view over Sanchi
The stupas of Sanchi look over the plains from the top of a high hill
Detailed carvings on the gates of Sanchi
Detailed carvings on the gates of Sanchi